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Tennessee PoliticsMon, 07 Apr 2014 14:51:50 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.6Cooper vote on NSA spurs social media outcry but few callshttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/cooper-vote-on-nsa-spurs-social-media-outcry-but-few-calls/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/cooper-vote-on-nsa-spurs-social-media-outcry-but-few-calls/#commentsFri, 26 Jul 2013 16:34:47 +0000Chas Siskhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=19872U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper’s vote to continue funding of the National Security Agency has sparked an online backlash, but that hasn’t translated into real-world pressure on the congressman.

Cooper’s vote late Wednesday against a failed amendment that would have denied the NSA funding for digital surveillance of cell phone records nearly immediately kicked off a spurt of complaints on Twitter, Reddit and other social media platforms. But so far only “a couple dozen” people have heeded calls to contact his office about the vote, according to a spokeswoman.

“We’ve seen more on social media than calls or emails,” said Haley Davidson. “But we consider that like any other constituent correspondence.”

Cooper was the only Tennessean to vote against the budget amendment, again demonstrating his unusual place as Congress’s ultimate man in the middle. Like curved spacetime or a powdered doughnut, NSA surveillance seems to be one of the few issues where the farther you move to the extremes, the closer you get to the other side.

The dynamic has produced vote-tally sheets in which Democrats like Memphis Rep. Steve Cohen and tea party Republicans like Reps. Scott DesJarlais and Chuck Fleischmann have appeared in the same column.

Cooper has defended his vote by noting he is also the only Tennessee representative to sit on the Armed Services Committee, which implies he has more knowledge about the program.

“The first duty of Congress is to keep America safe, which we have largely been since 9/11 and the start of these limited programs that have been ruled constitutional by every judge who has examined them. I am the only Tennessean on the Armed Services Committee. It would be a mistake to let Edward Snowden’s leaks weaken our defenses.”

He has also signed onto a letter from Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to President Barack Obama asking whether changes to the NSA’s surveillance program might be considered.

The letter is an olive branch, and probably not much else, to his critics. It’s hard to imagine social media complaints will pressure him to do much more to appease his critics.